Our Mission
People
Approximately 160 persons are active participants in the life of our church. There is a diversity of age groups here – children, youth, young adults, middle-aged and older adults. While we have special ministries with children, youth and adults, we value opportunities for different ages to share their lives with one another. We believe that one of the advantages of a relatively small church is that people get to know and value one another across the various age groups. Adults know children and youth. Children and youth know adults. Children enjoy the care and friendship of youth. There is a feeling of being a part of a larger family that we value here.
Atmosphere
When you walk through the doors of our church you will notice a relaxed and friendly group of people in a retreat-like and worshipful setting. Most will be dressed casually. But we try not to put people in a box here. A few of us actually enjoy wearing traditional “Sunday clothes” to church from time to time. It is a reminder that no matter how you come to church – what you are wearing or what you are going through at the time – you will find acceptance here.
If you are a visitor, we promise that we won’t shine the spotlight on you or swamp you with attention. But we also promise that you will be warmly greeted (and not just by “official” greeters) and your attendance will be greatly appreciated. Folks who are looking for a community where they can grow in faith in an atmosphere of acceptance and love often find our church the right place for them to be.
Our Faith
Our faith is centered in love – the love of God for the world as made known in Jesus and experienced through the presence of God’s Spirit.
We believe that God is living and active and continues to transform lives and situations through the power of love. As such, we are a church where people seek to be open through prayer and worship to the new thing that God is in the process of doing in their lives and in the world.
We believe that every person is important to God. We all are invited to find our place in what God is seeking to do in the world. Our church is a place where people are in the process of seeking God’s call and responding to it.
The Bible is our faith story and the central resource for our faith and practice as Christians. We believe that the Bible is a living document through which we continue to encounter God’s presence as people of faith.
We believe that faith is born and grows in a community of grace and love where people are allowed to be honest about their questions and up-front about their struggles to live out their faith in the realities of daily life.
Our Worship
The focus of our worship is a living and active God who is seeking each one of us out in love. In our worship we seek to be present to this God who is present to us as we sing our praises, confront our need for grace, listen for God’s Word addressed to us anew through scripture, offer ourselves in commitment and service, and experience this God’s love anew through the sacraments (the Lord’s Supper and Baptism) and acts of peace and blessing.
We worship as a community gathered around the table of our Lord Jesus. Glass windows framing the woods and world outside, natural wood paneling, and colorful banners give our place of worship the feel of a retreat-like setting that emphasizes both the importance of our community with each other and with God.
Our worship combines both the traditional and the contemporary. We sing hymns that have nurtured the faith of Christians through the centuries. We also sing hymns and songs composed in more recent years. The language of worship and the sermons are intended to communicate the good news of our faith with words that are understandable and relevant. Even so, our worship is not entertainment-oriented or market-driven. It is an expression of who we are as a community of faith and what we are called to be in our worship of God.
Our Tradition
We are a part of the Cumberland Presbyterian denomination that grew out of a movement of spiritual awakening and revival in the early years of the 1800s. A central belief of those who were the founders of our church was that Christ died for all persons, and that all people are included within God’s love for the world. Our calling is to accept the saving love that is already ours in Jesus Christ.
We are also a part of the Presbyterian family of churches rooted in the Reformed tradition that traces its roots to that part of the Protestant Reformation inspired by John Calvin. It is a tradition that recognizes that all of life is to be lived in response to God’s saving love. With regard to decision-making and leadership roles, clergy and laity serve as equals in Presbyterian and Reformed Churches.
If you would like to read our Confession of Faith of Cumberland Presbyterians, click or tap here.
